Fall can be one of the nicest seasons, when the weather cooperates! The days are warm but not humid and the nights are cool and great for sleeping. Without early nor’easters or remnants of hurricanes, it’s an opportune time to get the yard, house, and just about everything else tuned up and ready for winter. And that includes doing a personal tune-up as well. As we know, with winter comes colds, flus, and other potential viruses.

Like clockwork, the winter months see hospitals and doctors’ offices jammed with people falling prey to influenza – the infamous flu. Easily passed from person to person, the flu spreads through coughing and sneezing. While it can be prevented through a vaccine, immunization rates particularly among adults 60 and older remain below public health goals.

Some fear they’ll get the flu from the vaccine and thus avoid getting it. But the injected flu vaccine is made from killed viruses and does not contain live viruses. Thus, the flu shot cannot give anyone the flu. Sometime people feel some body aches and rarely, get a low grade fever after receiving the shot but that lasts one to two days only. The danger of avoiding the fly vaccine increases the older we get. As we age, our immune system weakens and our ability to fight illness decreases regardless of how healthy or youthful we feel. Adults over 65 are more vulnerable to the disease and its complications, particularly if they have chronic medical conditions.

There are two vaccine options specifically for adults 65 and older: the traditional flu shot and a higher dose vaccine. The higher dose vaccine addresses age-related immune system decline and triggers the body to produce more antibodies against the flu virus than that produced by the traditional flu shot. Both vaccine options are covered by Medicare Part B with no copay.

Regardless of one’s age, everyone aged 6 months and older is advised by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to get an annual influenza vaccination. Speak to your healthcare provider about receiving the shot. To learn more about the vaccine and the flu, visit www.ncoa.org/flu.